As simplistic as that sounds, it hasn’t always been that easy. There are coaching changes and recruiting misses and a culture of entitlement that can eat up any program. Even one that was the gold standard in college football for so many years.

In a little more than a decade, Florida State has gone from an elite program that finished in the top 5 of the AP poll 14 consecutive seasons, to just another team in a punching bag conference. The ’Noles have gone from the best team in the state of Florida—which for so many years meant the best in college football—to fighting to win their own division in the ACC.

Since that last national championship season in 1999, Florida State has lost 52 games in 12 years. In the 14-year run of AP top 5 finishes, FSU never lost more than two games in a season.

In the 11 years since that historic run, the ‘Noles have lost at least four games in nine seasons—including five seasons of five losses or more.

“It’s been hard to watch,” says former Florida State quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Chris Weinke. “You’re always thinking, this will be the year.”

So here we are again, at that exact intersection of a new year and the same old story. Florida State is back in the top 5, and set to play host to top 10 Clemson this weekend in a critical ACC Atlantic Division game. A game that, despite the hype of the moment, means so much more to an FSU program searching for an identity.

“I’ve heard this is the year every year that I’ve been here,” said FSU senior quarterback EJ Manuel. “It’s just talk until you go do it. We know everyone has heard enough about us being back year after year. We know there are questions out there.”

The biggest: how did it get to this point? How did a program with seemingly everything in place to win forever dissolve into a fractured organization that couldn’t get out of its own way?

It began with the botched retirement of former coach Bobby Bowden. There are two sides to this argument: those who say the FSU administration waited too long to force Bowden’s hand, the uncertainty of the situation dooming recruiting and team chemistry. And those who say Bowden didn’t get enough support; that the coach-in-waiting decision with Fisher undercut Bowden’s ability to lead the team.

Who cares who’s right in the argument? The reality is both played a role in kneecapping the program.

“I always felt like we were right there; so close,” Bowden says. “Now, every coach may say that, but I truly believed it. I’d been around that thing long enough to know. We just needed a few of those unique players to bring it all together. You can be as smart as you want as coaches, but you better have some of those Jimmies and Joes.”

In no spot was that more evident than the most important position on the field. For years under Bowden, the quarterback spot had a rotation: players signed, spent time learning the system and played (and eventually starred) as upperclassmen.

From Casey Weldon to Charlie Ward to Danny Kanell to Thad Busby to Weinke. Two Heisman winners; five All-Americans.

Once Weinke left, there was Chris Rix, Wyatt Sexton, Drew Weatherford, Xavier Lee, D’Vontrey Richardson and Christian Ponder. Who in that group stands out as a star?

Ponder was selected in the first round of the NFL Draft on potential, but had average numbers (48 TDs, 28 INTs) in three seasons marred by injury. And he was far and away the best of the group, which included three elite recruits (Weatherford, Lee, Richardson) who never panned out.

But it’s not just the quarterback position. Florida State hasn’t had a 1,000-yard rusher since Warrick Dunn in 1996. The Seminoles haven’t had an All-American wide receiver since Marvin Minnis in 2000.

There were misses on players the ’Noles signed (all those quarterbacks), and players FSU came up short in landing (Percy Harvin chose Florida over Florida State).

“You can’t go by the rankings of your recruiting classes,” Bowden said. “It’s how much do those boys, when they get there, want to put into it to get what they want out of it?”

That leads us to the second—and equally debilitating—factor in the fall of FSU: a sense of entitlement. It’s not like FSU wasn’t landing elite players. Bowden and his staff were beating USC (TB Lorenzo Booker) and Florida (WR DiShon Platt) and Oklahoma (DT Callahan Bright) for elite recruits; they just never panned out or made it to school.

For many, there was a sense that signing with FSU meant instant success—without putting work into it.

“They had a lot of guys who looked the part, but didn’t play it,” says one ACC coach. “A lot of guys who ran on the field and jawed during warmups, then didn’t show up in the game.”

Nowhere is that more evident than Florida State’s perplexing recent history with Wake Forest. The Deacons are not college football royalty; they’re a private school in a basketball conference trying to keep up in the ever-growing spectacle that is college football.

FSU has better players, better facilities, better support, better everything—and lost four of the last six to Wake Forest going into last weekend’s game in Tallahassee. If ever there were an indicator of FSU’s ability to reclaim its glory, this is the game.

When FSU lost last year in Winston-Salem, Wake’s players and fans taunted the ’Noles as they walked off the field. Last week, after dismantling the Deacons 52-0, the talk of what could be emerged again.

They talked about a “statement” game; about showing the college football world that this FSU team isn’t like those of the past. How this team, which lost both of its preseason All-American candidates (CB/PR Greg Reid dismissed; DE Brandon Jenkins injured) before the season got interesting, wouldn’t fold in the face of adversity.

This team has much bigger goals.

“Our goal is to win the ACC,” says fullback Lonnie Pryor, “and hopefully a national championship.”

What seemed laughable in years past now looks more probable. The ’Noles, you see, have embraced Fisher’s plan—the same plan that earned Fisher a national championship ring in his days as offensive coordinator at LSU in 2003 under coach Nick Saban. The same plan that has Alabama currently dominating the college football world.

The game revolves around defense. And the job of the offense? Don’t screw it up.

FSU is No. 1 in the nation in scoring and total defense, and has given up three points all season. Granted, two of those games were against FCS cupcakes Murray State and Savannah State. But take a closer look at the Wake Forest game to understand the transformation.

Last season, Wake toyed with the FSU defense, scoring 35 points and gaining nearly 400 yards. Last week, the 52-0 loss was the worst for Wake coach Jim Grobe.

The Deacons had 126 total yards, another worst in the Grobe era. Wake punted 13 times, and converted 1-of-16 third downs. It was the 11th consecutive game that FSU held its opponent under 20 points.

More than anything, it was FSU not overlooking Wake; it was FSU without the mindset of winning because of the name on the jersey instead of the work that goes into it.

“They were physical; it was impressive watching them play,” Grobe said. “This is a really, really special football team.”

How special? Good enough to win the ACC for the first time since 2005. Good enough to head into November as a factor in the national championship race for the first time since 2000.

Good enough to take a game like Clemson this weekend—a game where everything can be lost in one afternoon—and not look beyond to what could be. Good enough to understand finding an identity is more powerful than using one that’s long gone.

“We’ve been saying all offseason that we have to live in the moment,” Manuel said.